Our favourite Governor/Barbarian/Terminator/Oak is back again, giving the world advice on how to both stay healthy and stay positive in the midst of a global pandemic.
It’s a little known fact that Arnie is a huge Redditor.
He’s been frequenting the site for about seven years now, and more often than not, posts pretty wholesome and inspiring content. He has been known to post personal, exclusive details and memories of movies he has worked on, inspire people to love themselves and continue trying to be better, and fight for clean air and a reduction in pollution. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg!
This time, he’s encouraging people to look out for their fellow human, and stay indoors.
“Most of us will be fine if we get the virus. This is a time not to think about yourself, but to think about the people you could be infecting. Be a part of the solution, and stay home every chance you can. That means no bars, no restaurants, no gatherings, and you’ll all be shocked to hear this from me, but no gyms.” -Arnold Schwarzenegger
Lucky for us, Arnold provides a home workout routine that he himself used, along with pictures of him demonstrating the workouts back in 1977. You can see his Instagram post below!
The exercise works as follows: You perform this workout every other day. You complete the reps of one exercise in any way you can before moving on to the next. They don’t have to be all in one go. You can break up a 20 rep workout into sets of 2, 5, or 10 reps, whatever you need. What matters is that you complete those reps with perfect form.
“A note on form: if you cheat at an exercise, you are only cheating yourself. Don’t let your ego do the movements for you. You might want to show off to me or your friends and do 50 push-ups in one set, but if you can’t do them with perfect form, I’ll be more impressed by 5 sets of 10 perfect push-ups.”
There are suggested numbers of reps for beginners and for experienced gym rats. If you’re just starting off, Schwarzenegger suggests just getting used to the movements, perfecting your form and not pushing overly hard. He advises against working so hard that you are left unable to workout when the next session comes around.
“Adjust the exercises for yourself – if a push-up is too much, instead of putting your hands on the floor, put them on a counter to make the movement a little easier. If a dip between chairs is too much, use your feet on the floor to take some of the weight off of your upper body. Don’t feel bad about working your way up to the full workout – we all start somewhere.”
Below is the full circuit of nine workouts you should complete each session:
Pushups
Beginner: 25 Reps
Advanced: 50 Reps
You’ll want to keep about an inch between your nose and the floor when you dip down, being sure to keep your elbows close to your sides for the best form.
Dips between chairs
Beginner: 20 Reps
Advanced: 50 Reps
Row between chairs
Beginner: 30 Reps
Advanced: 50 Reps
These are kind of like reverse pushups, you want to pull yourself up so your face is between your hands and your elbows are bent at about a 90 degree angle.
Sit-ups
Beginner: 30 Reps
Advanced: 100 Reps
Bent-leg raises
Beginner: 25 Reps
Advanced: 50 Reps
For this work out you’ll want to keep your legs straight when they’re extended to keep your core engaged, and then bring your knees as high as you can while keeping your back straight and firmly planted on the ground. You want to take these slow so as to avoid rocking in place.
Bent-over twists
Beginner: 25 Reps
Advanced: 50 Reps
These photos demonstrate how to perform a twist a little nicer than the ones Arnold provides, although these ones are shown laying down, while the bent-over twists Arnold suggests are performed standing up.
Knee bends (squats)
Beginner: 25 Reps
Advanced: 50-70 Reps
Calf raises
Beginner: 25 Reps
Advanced: 50 Reps
The key here is to keep your weight on one leg by raising the other, and then raising your heel off the ground. Even better if you can place a book or something similar under your toes to begin in a position with a lowered heel.
Chin-ups
Beginner: 10 Reps
Advanced: 30 Reps
In case you don’t use Instagram, you can also find the photos he posted below.
If you find yourself stumbling with the home workout, remember these wise words:
“Gladiators and Vikings didn’t have gymnasiums.” -Arnold Schwarzenegger, The Austrian Oak
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Source: Reddit, Instagram, Imgur
